Slideshow: Hide/Seek: Difference and Desire in American Portraiture

The Brooklyn Museum’s exhibition “Hide/Seek” opened this weekend and we’ve got the slideshow to prove it. The much-lauded traveling show about how gender and sexual identity has shaped American portraiture became a point of contention in conservative circles last year after the Catholic League described the exhibition as an “outrageous use of taxpayer money”. In response, congressional Republicans took up the mantle, and Smithsonian Director Wayne Clough controversially removed David Wojnarowicz's video “A Fire in My Belly” from the show at The National Portrait Museum.

This time around, the reception to the show has been more subdued, and so far no major politician has thought to make a stink. About three dozen people from a Catholic group based in Spring Grove, Pennsylvania showed up to protest the exhibition on the weekend, though, and Nicholas A. DiMarzio, the Catholic bishop of Brooklyn, has called for the museum to pull “A Fire in My Belly”.

And as for the show itself? It looks great. We had AFC’s Christopher Schreck head over to the museum last Friday to take a few shots for us. Take a look. The exhibition opened November 18th and runs through February 12th.

The show does look great, well done Brooklyn Museum. Nothing offensive about this show. It is offensive that the artworld has censored itself for so long and there hasn’t been such a focused museum show until now. So many people outside of the artworld (with exception of the clergy and politicians) has no problem identifying that there is a definite revelation in fine art centered on sexual identity, however it seems like major American museums and art history was somewhat reluctant to embrace this. The Brooklyn Museum’s version of Hide/Seek is a definite must see for anyone who is in NYC.